Author Archive
Watch Over Your Heart
On Arrogance & the Student of Sacred Knowledge Purifying one’s heart is a critically important matter for all believers, as the Qur’an and teachings of our Prophet ﷺ (peace be upon him) emphasize, but for one traveling the path of sacred knowledge it is an even more crucial endeavor. This is because the state of [...]
A Letter on Preparing for Death
By the Imam Hujjat al-Islam (The Proof of Islam) Muhammad bin Muhammad Abu Hamid al-Ghazali1 | Translated by Shazia Ahmad Introduction by the Translator I came across Risalat Sharh as-Sadr at the Dar as-Salaam Bookstore in Cairo a few months ago. It was a tiny booklet hidden away on a corner shelf, tucked in-between much larger volumes, [...]
A Letter to the Aspiring Western Student of Islam
As salaamu `alaykum (Peace be upon you all), To my dear brother or sister from the West, You dream of escaping from the rat race and empty materialism of our modern, fast-food culture and traveling to a traditional land of Islam – a land that is exotic and different, steeped in history, where mosques stand [...]
Closed Doors and Opened Eyes: Spirituality for the Non-Fasting
Originally written and posted: August 2009 | Updated and revised: August 2011 Ramadan is a blessed time of year often characterized by certain specific forms of worship. Fasting, reading Qur’an and performing salah (five times a day prayer) are the main focus of many people’s time and energy during this month. However, for most women [...]
The Top Six Mistakes in Usul (Part 6)
Made by Students, Regular Muslim Folks & Many in Between: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI Mistake #1: “There is only one right answer for every issue.” Differences of opinion among scholars are a natural and inevitable part of Islamic jurisprudence. We discussed a number of reasons for [...]
Spiritual Pitfalls for the Muslim Blogger
Islam and the Internet Series: Intro | Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IV Blogs are gateways, that grant us access into the interior worlds of other people. They offer us glimpses into people’s experiences, thoughts and feelings, revealing [...]
The Top Six Mistakes in Usul (Part 5)
Made by Students, Regular Muslim Folks & Many in Between: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI Mistake #2: “The rules of Shari`ah should be constant and unchanging.” On the opposite end of the spectrum of what was discussed in Part IV of this series are those who [...]
The Top Six Mistakes in Usul (Part 4)
Made by Students, Regular Muslim Folks & Many in Between: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI Mistake #3: “All rulings change according to circumstances and context.” Another mistake people make when considering the rules of Shari’ah (Islamic law) is assuming that they are always subject [...]
The Top Six Mistakes in Usul (Part 3)
Made by Students, Regular Muslim Folks & Many in Between: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI Mistake #4: “A daleel means a verse from the Qur’an or a hadith.” And, “If someone has daleel from the Qur’an and Sunnah for an issue, then there’s no [...]
The Top Six Mistakes in Usul (Part 2)
Made by Students, Regular Muslim Folks & Many in Between: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI Mistake #5: “Lack of knowledge is always a valid excuse.” Just as Allah the Exalted is generous, tolerant, and compassionate, we find His Law marked by the qualities of [...]
The Top Six Mistakes in Usul
Made by Students, Regular Muslim Folks & Many in Between: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI Out of all the Islamic subjects I’ve had the opportunity to explore in my time studying abroad, one of my favorites has been Usul al-Fiqh – the study of the methodology [...]
Question Regarding Marital Rape
Question: Is marital rape allowed in Islam? Answer: As salaamu alaykum, Thank you for asking this important question which has come to the fore in recent times, and which has been the cause of confusion for many people. Here are some important points to take into consideration when learning about this issue: It is absolutely [...]
Questioning the Hadith?
Question: I was wondering if you could talk about how we should deal with hadiths (Prophetic traditions) that seem to be unfair towards women; for example, that the hellfire is full of women, a woman is deficient in intellect, etc. How are we supposed to understand and accept these kinds of statements when they seem to [...]
Married While Hijabi?
Question: I started wearing hijab1 a few years ago and I’m proud of it and happy that I’m doing it. The thing is my family introduced to me to a guy a few months ago for marriage, and it’s been going really well. The only problem is that he doesn’t want me to wear hijab. [...]
Pearls from Scholars
Shaykh Sa`id Ramadan al-Bouti is a well-respected modern-day scholar and author who is most popularly known for his esteemed work Fiqh us-Seerah. In my time in Damascus, I saw hundreds of people from every walk of life – mothers and shopkeepers, students and cab drivers, young and old – flock to his weekly classes at [...]
Taking Off the Hijab
Question: I understand that hijab is required, and I’ve been wearing it for some time now but I feel like putting it on might have been a mistake. I don’t feel like it’s made me become a better Muslim, and I feel almost like I’m deceiving people because they look at me as an example [...]
For the Struggling Student
Question: Recently, my interest in studying Islam in depth has grown, and I’ve been reading some books on a number of topics in the Islamic Sciences. While I hoped that my studies would bring me to a higher level of iman [faith] and a closer relationship with Allah, I feel that the opposite may have [...]
“Koran Boy” and Miracles
Last October a popular British tabloid, The Sun, printed a story about a young Muslim boy in Dagestan, dubbed “Koran Boy” whose family claimed that miraculous imprints of the Quran would appear on his body at varying times.1We all may have encountered stories in this vein at one time or another – reports of a [...]
Remembering Allah with the Heart
From a talk given Friday Nov. 21st 200 All of us are familiar with the term dhikr – the noun of the Arabic verb dhakaraa / yadhkuru which means mention and remembrance of Allah (swt). Often when we think of dhikr specific words and phrases come to mind such as SubhanAllah, Alhamdulillah, Allahu Akbar, and [...]
Contribute to Your Virtual Mosque
Follow us on:
One Legacy Radio
Recent Comments